Audiophilepure

https://www.hifinews.com/content/thorens-td-202-turntable-package

However, the midband is this deck’s core strength. Rarely thrown off course here, even this modestly high energy indie dance music came over in a tidy if not exactly super-detailed fashion. I enjoyed the way that the lead vocal line appeared in the centre of the mix, with a very natural texture. I also liked the reproduction of the chiming keyboards too, which had plenty of energy and impetus.

It’s only when you focus in on the ‘hi-fi aspects’ of the TD 202 that you become aware of its slight cloudiness. Soundstaging, for example, is also a bit narrower than the sort of three-dimensional experience you’d expect from a good mid-price design but while the TD 202 sounds a little shut in, in absolute terms, there’s still plenty of music to take in and enjoy.

The turntable is such a neutral vinyl platform, it allows the differences in arms to be rendered in the sharpest focus, both in terms of similarity and difference. You understand why the XL AIR has multiple arm positions, and why so many XL AIR users use more than one arm. The turntable was honest and neutral enough to ensure the ‘order’ of the Air Line and the ‘flow’ of the 4Point 14 were rendered so accurately, it wasn’t an either/or option; the choice of the arm was a natural reaction to different records. This is not audiophilia nervosa, just the logical extension of how an arm, cartridge and record interact when the turntable is simply doing its job better than all the rest.

The entire sonic presentation is detailed, 3-dimensional, and consistent. Every sound has a solidity and dynamic forcefulness that mimics life. This is not a perception that one or more veils has been deleted, but instead, that a direct connection to the recording microphone has been locked in. Where lesser turntables have noticeable differences – a little more of this, a little less of that – the Montana Neo raises the bar in every parameter for a significant system upgrade for all types of music. Just as the Origin Live tonearm expands the performance envelope of the Clearaudio turntable, the Montana Neo upgrades the sonic potential of the Origin Live tonearm. The combination of the Montana Neo turntable, Origin Live Agile tonearm and ZYX UNIverse Optimum moving-coil phono cartridge is stunning! The AS TA-7000 NEO tonearm arrived late in the audition and will be covered in a future article. Initial impressions are positive.

Perhaps the most noticeable change is the move from the JMW 3D-10 Reference arm to a 3D Gimbal tonearm. This still retains the VTA adjustment tower but a conventional gimballed arm means no more jiggling tonearm when it comes to lifting the cartridge on and off the record. In truth, you get used to this very fast, but can be off-putting to those new to high-end decks. Once again, it’s something that is perfectly fitting in a Prime Signature and beyond, but those viewing the Prime as their first real high-end turntable might get the jitters when they see the arm moving so freely. VPI spent a lot of time developing a gimballed tonearm that didn’t undermine the performance as they heard it; the development that first went into the Mark Levinson turntable and then to the limited edition HW-40 turntable meant that VPI felt it was possible to make a high-end gimballed arm without throwing the baby out with the bathwater, and with its 3D-printed arm, it offers a ‘best of both worlds’ approach.

https://www.audiophilia.com/reviews/2016/5/25/the-wilson-benesch-full-circle-turntable

The first thing that hits you about the Circle is its pinpoint imaging: side to side, front to back and in height as well. Take, for example, the numerous percussion flourishes in the score of Debussy’s Iberia [Classics LSC-2222]. The castanets and tambourines are suddenly located freely in space, quite high above the loudspeakers. Solo instruments are portrayed with rock-solid positioning and plenty of air.

The noise floor, even with a low output cartridge like the Lydian, is exceptionally deep and black. The 1980 RCA Red Seal pressing of Takemitsu’s Waves [ARL1-3483] is hardly state-of-the-art, and yet the expanse of RCA Studio A spread before me, populated with living, breathing musicians.